Lunchtime Patio Dining at Stephanie’s on Newbury, Boston

As much as I absolutely love my sister and niece staying with me for three weeks this summer, I have to say it is taking its toll on my semi-sensible eating habits. They have gone from just sort of healthy to absolutely nothing at even remotely resembling a healthy(ish) diet. They have been here 10 days so far and after a week of everything with chips (fries) followed by ice-cream, I was craving something a little bit healthier and preferably with green in it.

As long as I have lived in Boston, I have always enjoyed the super salads at Stephanie’s on Newbury, so that is exactly where I planned to take us for lunch. This long standing restaurant has been around since 1994 and always seems to attract a crowd. I was actually a frequent visitor to their bar for a glass of vino on many evenings after work when I lived in the Back Bay.

Located on the corner of Newbury and Exeter Street, Stephanie’s boasts one of the nicest and probably most popular dining patios in the area. It’s also great for Newbury Street people watching.

As it was a beautiful day, al fresco dining was an absolute must. I have to say we have been incredibly lucky with the weather for this family visit. We put our names in and decided to window shop the stores on Newbury for the 30 minute wait for an outside table.

Enjoying patio dining (and ice cream) with Ava.

Returning to the restaurant we were asked to wait a little longer and this is my only negative comment… the host was very snippy and a little rude to us for standing inside and not outside the patio area. We stood exactly where we were told to stand by the other host in order to be seated. I guess it was a busy and perhaps stressful day of tourists. That moment was quickly over and we were escorted to a table right on the corner of Newbury and Exeter. Perfect!

Our waiter came over immediately and offered water. As I was also on vacation, a glass of summer crisp Albarino was ordered while we looked at the lunch menus.

My sister, a big meat eater opted for the Grilled Tenderloin Salad, which I featured as a Fab Friday Dish last week. She raved about it as you can see… “the juicy steak cut like butter and melted in your mouth like chocolate. Marinated in something delicately sweet, which paired perfectly with the fresh salad, in particular the beetroot that tasted nothing like it does at home in England – just sublime. I also absolutely loved the red wine dressing and super crispy shoestring potatoes.” I guess she was a fan.

One of my favorite salads is the Ahi Tuna, however I decided to give the Thai Style Chicken Salad a whirl. I was not disappointed. I loved the shredded chicken atop crunchy, fresh vegetables. My favorite of this dish is absolutely their dressing, just spicy in enough to awaken the taste buds with bursts of chile and citrus flavors.